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	<title>Dotting the Map &#187; budget travel</title>
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		<title>Five ways to seriously save money this year</title>
		<link>http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/03/17/five-ways-to-seriously-save-money-this-year/</link>
		<comments>http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/03/17/five-ways-to-seriously-save-money-this-year/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:32:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Hilarye</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Posts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Travel Tips]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget travel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[guest post]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.dottingthemap.com/?p=508</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hey all- I did a guest post over at CheapOAir that I thought you might be interested in reading. In the post I offer five tips on saving money this year so you don&#8217;t have to get rid of your vacation just because of the economy! Check it out here!
Related Posts:No more excuses!Best part about [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Hey all- I did a guest post over at<a href="http://cheapoair.wordpress.com"> CheapOAir </a>that I thought you might be interested in reading. In the post I offer five tips on saving money this year so you don&#8217;t have to get rid of your vacation just because of the economy! Check it out <a href="http://cheapoair.wordpress.com/2009/03/17/five-ways-to-seriously-save-money-traveling-this-year/">here</a>!</p>
<div id="crp_related"><h3>Related Posts:</h3><ul><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/02/10/no-more-excuses/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">No more excuses!</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/05/19/best-parts-about-road-trips/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">Best part about road trips&#8230;</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/07/31/visit-paris-for-pennies/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">Visit Paris for Pennies</a></li></ul></div>]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>How to look for steals of a deal</title>
		<link>http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/12/15/how-to-look-for-steals-of-a-deal/</link>
		<comments>http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/12/15/how-to-look-for-steals-of-a-deal/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Dec 2008 21:03:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Hilarye</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[My Life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Travel Tips]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget travel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[get away]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[steals of a deal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[traveling]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.dottingthemap.com/?p=298</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Oh the economy. How I have grown to despise that word. Even more so since it has been affecting me personally. And while it’s scary- there can be a lot of opportunity as well. If you are feeling the economy blues- it may be time to take a quick vacation to forget your troubles for [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Oh the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy">economy</a>. How I have grown to despise that word. Even more so since it has been affecting me personally. And while it’s scary- there can be a lot of opportunity as well. If you are feeling the economy blues- it may be time to take a quick vacation to forget your troubles for a few days.</p>
<p>It’s important to look for some bargains when your pockets aren’t as deep as they used to be. Here are some tips for traveling cheap and in style.</p>
<p>Sign up for e-newsletters: As annoying as they can be- signing up for discount traveling sites newsletters can help you save money when you are very flexible on your plans. Updates will come to your inbox informing you of awesome Las Vegas hotel deals, and cheap airplane tickets to Orlando (and more- those were obviously examples).</p>
<p>Sign up for Airline’s e-newsletters and download widgets: Along the same lines as the above tip, many airlines also have a newsletter that will ping you when they have can’t miss deals. <a href="http://blog.delta.com/">Delta</a> and <a href="http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/travel_center.html?ref=trvltls_gn">Southwest</a> are both known for last minute deals that can be found by their newletters or widgets. However with those deals you must act fast- they disappear as quickly as they come.</p>
<p>Be flexible: While many places are slashing prices to be competitive others are raising prices to keep afloat. If you are dead set on a location then try to be flexible on timing. For example many hotels are cheaper during the week then the weekend (depending if they are a tourist location- you will find the opposite if they rely on business travelers). If you are set on your timing then try to be flexible on location.</p>
<p><span id="more-298"></span></p>
<p>Do your research: Nobody has a ton of time to sit around and look at every discount traveler’s site, but you can find some great deals. Choose a few- because most are pretty similar and go to town comparing rates. Some good ones are <a href="http://tickets.priceline.com/default.asp?rdr=1&amp;session_key=410011AC420011AC200812152058565953b0403192">priceline.com</a>, <a href="http://www.travelocity.com/">travelocity</a>, <a href="http://www.orbitz.com/">orbitz</a>, <a href="http://www.kayak.com/">kayak.com</a>, and many others.</p>
<p>Don’t forget to haggle: I feel like with the internet and all other tools that we have at our disposal that haggling has become a lost art. Many have let the internet take on that role for them. While it may take guts- the payoff can be big! Having worked at a hotel before- I know that haggling can be an acceptable part of the booking process (usually done in person at the hotel). It only works if there are a lot of hotels in the area and the vacancy rate is typically below 70%- but it varies from hotel to hotel. At the hotel I worked for we would have the set rate for the day and then a separate rack that we could not go below. Obviously our goal was to upsell but it was better to go lower than to leave a vacant room.</p>
<p>There are many other things you can do as well to get good deals (please share your tips) but these are some of the very basic tips that have helped me in my travels. Traveling is a luxury that is most likely the first to go when making cutbacks in your budgets. But if done right it may actually help cutback other areas in your budget including therapy bills!</p>
<div id="crp_related"><h3>Related Posts:</h3><ul><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/02/27/what-does-a-travel-agent-do/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">What does a travel agent do?</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/09/29/is-the-economy-affecting-your-traveling/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">Is the economy affecting your traveling?</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/04/30/first-class-freedom/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">First class freedom</a></li></ul></div>]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Visit Paris for Pennies</title>
		<link>http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/07/31/visit-paris-for-pennies/</link>
		<comments>http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/07/31/visit-paris-for-pennies/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:33:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Hilarye</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Travel News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Travel Tips]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget travel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Europe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[France]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Louvre]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paris]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wi-Fi]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.dottingthemap.com/?p=64</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Ok not really, but wouldn’t that be amazing? In preparation for my upcoming Europe trip, I have been keeping my eyes open to articles that will offer me advice on how to save money while I am overseas. I came across this really great article that gives tips to alleviate a tight wallet when visiting [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/eiffel-tower-picture.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-68 alignright" title="eiffel-tower-picture" src="http://www.dottingthemap.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/eiffel-tower-picture-213x300.jpg" alt="" width="213" height="300" /></a>Ok not really, but wouldn’t that be amazing? In preparation for my upcoming Europe trip, I have been keeping my eyes open to articles that will offer me advice on how to save money while I am overseas. I came across this really great <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_travel/20080728/ap_tr_ge/travel_trip_paris_on_a_budget;_ylt=AlAoRnbCYjhcJFjqgJEG9hU8sM0F">article</a> that gives tips to alleviate a tight wallet when visiting <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris">Paris</a>. I found it really helpful as the author Gaelle Faure talks about ways to save money visiting the museums, where to stay and eat as well as how to get around. It’s worth checking out. My favorite tip- the <a href="http://www.louvre.fr/llv/commun/home.jsp">Louvre</a> and all other major museums are free on the first Sunday of the month, I actually rearranged my trip so that I will be in Paris on a first Sunday! Plus I love the idea of renting a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle">bike</a> for only 1.50 and going on a self-guided tour of Paris. It’s also good to know that Paris is a truly connected city offering <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi">Wi-Fi</a> free all over town, gives peace of mind knowing I will be able to blog while I am in the city of lights.</p>
<div id="crp_related"><h3>Related Posts:</h3><ul><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2010/03/24/my-favorite-travel-tips/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">My Favorite Travel Tips</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2008/07/19/check-please/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">Check Please!</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dottingthemap.com/2009/01/05/this-year-make-a-new-years-travel-resolution/" rel="bookmark" class="crp_title">This year make a new years travel resolution</a></li></ul></div>]]></content:encoded>
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